Jesus Cropped from the Picture

Jesus Cropped from the Picture

as an example. People everywhere are accustomed to orienting their behavior around the weather . Nobody places themself as sovereign above the weather , despite human attempts to control its effects through air conditioning, heating, shelter, and clothing. It is universally understood that the weather cannot be changed or controlled (and oftentimes it cannot even be predicted). People must submit their actions to the seasons and changes in weather.

In the same way, there needs to be something constant in the Church, like the weather, around which Christians everywhere, and at all times, can orient themselves. Webber said:

The point of integration with a new culture is not to restore that cultural form of Christianity, but to recover the universally accepted framework of faith that originated with the apostles, was developed by the Fathers, and has been handed down by the church in its liturgical and theological traditions. This hermeneutic allows us to face the changing cultural situation with integrity. Our calling is not to reinvent the Christian faith, but, in keeping with the past, to carry forward what the church has affirmed from its beginning. 109 This framework is the Constant that was given by God himself, not formed by human conception or cultural forces. Wells asserted, “The church’s goals and functions, therefore, are given to it. They come, not from business manuals, not from cultural norms, and not from marketing savvy.” 110 Fortunately, the Holy Spirit has given the Church this Constant so the Church is not left to her own devices to figure out what to believe.

154